1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of modular shelving, and in its preferred embodiment to plastic injection and blow molding shelving which includes at least one cabinet having at least one door with an interference fit coupling system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many different types of shelving systems are known in the art, including modular metal and plastic systems which can be shipped and sold in compact packaging and erected by the consumer. For example, metal shelving units are sold that include a plurality of metal shelves and four metal corner pieces. The corners of the metal shelves are attached to the corner pieces by a bolt and nut assembly. This type of assembly requires a large number of individual pieces and specialized tools for assembly.
Other modular shelving and cabinetry is sold for organizing mail, tools, entertainment pieces, and other similar articles. This type of modular shelving and cabinetry is typically constructed from wood and/or metal in specific dimensions. Separate pieces of the modular shelving and/or cabinetry are designed to be mounted together by hardware which require screws, latches and/or bolts. Again, this type of modular shelving requires a large number of pieces. Additionally, this type of modular shelving and cabinetry is often expensive due to materials used for construction and purpose.
It is also known that such modular shelving can include one or more cabinets. Some systems include numerous drawers within the cabinet units. Others simply place a cabinet on a shelf, while yet others build the cabinet into the unit. For the latter, prior systems have required numerous component parts, resulting in higher manufacturing costs and more difficult assembly. Another disadvantage of many modular shelving and cabinetry is the lack of stability and balance. This problem is exacerbated when items are placed on or within the shelves and/or cabinetry off-center.
Accordingly, it is an objective of the modular shelving with cabinet of the present invention to provide shelving that is strong and balanced when properly erected. Another objective of the modular shelving with cabinet of the present invention is that it should be easy to assemble by having as few different parts as possible. A related objective of the modular shelving with cabinet is that it should not require specialized tools for assembly.
Yet another objective of the modular shelving with cabinet of the present invention is that it should be inexpensive to manufacture. The modular shelving with cabinet of the present invention should also eliminate the need for various components relating to the left or right side of the shelving unit. Finally, an objective of the modular shelving with cabinet is to achieve all of the aforesaid advantages and objectives without incurring any substantial relative disadvantage.
Modular shelving with cabinet that demonstrates the objectives and advantages as discussed above would represent a significant advance in this art.
The present invention overcomes the above noted disadvantages of the related art by providing a modular shelving with cabinet(s) that reduces manufacturing cost, reduces part count, and improves performance and ease of assembly. The present invention also eliminates the need for different components for the left and right side of the cabinet.
A further feature of the present invention is to provide modular shelving with cabinet(s) that requires less precise manufacturing tolerances than prior systems. This is accomplished by a coupling system used by the modular shelving with cabinet of the present invention.
A different feature of the present invention is to provide modular shelving with cabinet(s) in which each door is coupled to a vertical, tubular riser by an interference fit which inhibits unwanted door movement following assembly.
How these and other features of the invention are accomplished, individually, in combination or in various subcombinations will be described in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, taken in conjunction with the attached FIGURES. Generally, however, they are accomplished in a modular cabinet system including at least one shelf having sockets at its corners and vertically positioned risers coupled to the sockets to space the shelves apart. In the preferred embodiment, the risers are tapered and nest within one another to permit stacking multiple cabinets when erecting the modular shelving with cabinet. Each cabinet in the system preferably includes two side wall panels, a rear wall panel and at least one door panel, each being coupled to the risers by having the risers pass through hollow sections of the panels and through upper and lower holes therein. The holes have a diameter equal to or just slightly less than the smallest diameter of that portion of a riser located between two shelves, and one or more radial slots is provided in the material surrounding the holes to allow the material to flex and accommodate larger diameter portions of the riser to provide an interference fit.
The coupling system used to couple the panels with the risers is made by providing shelving material and providing a hole that extends through a portion of the shelving material. As mentioned above, the hole has at least one slot extending radially outward from the hole. The hole may be provided by methods known in the art including cutting the shelves material, or by blow molding the shelving material to include a raised portion on the surface of the shelving material, which may be subsequently removed, by cutting or the like, to expose the hole.
Other ways in which the features of the invention are accomplished will become apparent to those skilled in the art after they have read the specification, and such other ways are deemed to fall within the scope of the present invention if they fall within the scope of the claims which follow.